B4-0113/94

Resolution on the report of July 1994 by the Committee of Enquiry on the transport of goods by road in the European single market

The European Parliament,

-having regard to Rule 40(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

-having regard to the report by the Committee of Enquiry on road transport, submitted to the Commission on 6 July 1994,

-having regard to the Commission's White Paper on the future development of the Common Transport Policy (COM(92)494), the Council's conclusions of 8 June 1993 on the White Paper and Parliament's resolutions of 27 May 1993 on the White Paper and 18 January 1994 on the future development of the common transport policy,

A.having regard to the profound crisis affecting the transport of goods by road in the European Union, one of the causes of which is the progressive crisis affecting the transport model hitherto advocated in Europe,

B.whereas industrial strategies are increasingly indulging in the 'just-in-time' practice and drastically reducing their stocks, which has significant consequences for transport,

C.whereas the completion of the single market and the process of liberalizing and granting access to the market in the sector have so far not been accompanied by sufficient appropriate positive measures,

D.alarmed at the figures contained in the report by the Committee of Enquiry concerning instances of fraud and irregularity in the application of Community legislation, in an area which is extremely sensitive as far as safety is concerned,

E.whereas, in accordance with the Commission's recent recommendations, there is an urgent need to restore a balance between the various modes of transport in order to create an inter-modal system which respects the requirements of social condition, environmental protection, safeguarding people's quality of life and saving energy,

F.stressing the importance of choosing infrastructure which is consistent with the new transport policy outlined in the Commission's above-mentioned White Paper,

G.whereas, in order to solve the problems involved in road transport in Europe, action is needed to deal not only with demand but also with supply,

H.whereas legislation should stimulate rather than hamper technical developments,

I.having regard to the role of the Member States and of national legislation in the road transport sector, in particular as regards controls,

J.having regard to the numerous cooperation and association agreements concluded between the EU and third countries, in particular the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and the possible repercussions in the transport sector and on access to the relevant markets.

1.Considers it essential that the definition of the EU's policy on goods transport should look beyond the completion of the single market;

2.Calls on the Commission to draw up, as a matter of urgency, an action programme for the road transport sector, taking as a starting point the Committee of Enquiry's report, and stresses the need to give priority to modes of transport which are less harmful to the environment;

3.Calls on the Commission and the Council to include among the topics for the forthcoming intergovernmental conferences in 1996 a single legal framework for transport and for infrastructure in the 21st century;

4.Stresses that the principle of freedom of choice for the user, if not accompanied by positive measures, will not solve the crisis in the road transport sector;

5.Considers therefore that it is necessary to lay down rules and measures for harmonization designed to make competition between the various modes of transport fair from the technical, fiscal and social points of view, when costs of infrastructure are being charged and when investment in infrastructure is being financed and, above all, when external, environmental and social costs are being internalized and charged;

6.Calls on the Commission to identify segments of the market on the basis of the potential for transferring from one mode to another, to specify and charge costs in relation to how intensively the infrastructure is used, to try to find a method of gradually controlling capacity at critical points of the system, accompanied by the provision of alternative systems, to provide incentives for research on engines, vehicles and fuels which are less harmful to the environment, by the adoption of stricter measures, to promote an increase in the load carried by each vehicle, reducing the number of journeys made by empty vehicles, inter alia by developing information systems for management, and to make provision for a review of Regulation 3820/85, based on, inter alia, a more realistic and flexible definition of 'working time';

7.Calls on the Council, the Commission and the Member States to set up, in cooperation with the social partners, an appropriate system of controls to prevent fraud and breaches of regulations in the sector of goods transport; stresses the urgent need for clear signs of political will towards this goal, but considers it essential that at the same time a structural reform of the sector be carried out to the same end;

8.Agrees with the Committee of Enquiry that the immobilization of a vehicle is often the most effective instrument for preventing irregularities, in particular as regards safety;

9.Stresses the fact that road hauliers, whether employed or self-employed, are often the first victims of the system of unfair competition in road transport, and stresses the difficulties encountered by small and medium sized undertakings in the sector with regard to the process of liberalization, since the prices of road transport are tending to fall, whilst costs remain the same;

10.Stresses that the development of the road freight transport sector is dependent upon more competitive and more liberalized inland navigation and railways with modernized and technically adequate infrastructures;

11.Calls on the Commission to promote, in particular, the harmonization of vocational training, adapting it to high safety standards, and to try to devise an aid plan for the restructuring of the market following liberalization, ensuring an effective system of controls;

12.Calls on the Commission to improve R&TD in the transport sector, in particular as regards the application of telematic and communications systems in the prevention of fraud;

13.Considers that the preparation at both European and national level of single-mode master plans for transport networks leads to inter-modality becoming a purely theoretical exercise, and considers that an effective and lasting inter-modal approach must be based on coherent decisions regarding infrastructure networks and inter-operability;

14.Reaffirms, as regards relations with third countries, the need to proceed gradually and in accordance with the general principles of the common transport policy and sustainable mobility; also considers that the role of the transport sector in cooperation agreements or European agreements must be specified and strengthened; considers it essential to strengthen the role of the European Union in international transport organizations;

15.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and of the applicant countries, the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) and the Committee of Transport Workers' Unions in the European Community.